I started exploring this area in 1976 and I continue to follow tracks and routes wherever they lead, with the aid of map, compass, GPSr and camera. After many dead-ends, but also many discoveries, I chose to share this information. Getting out 12 months each year, I continue to explore trails, tracks, routes, and waterways of the Kamloops area and beyond.
The Alakai’i Swamp Trail starts at the end of the road. On the island of Kauai the roads end at either end of the Na Pali Coast and one road runs up onto the central mountain, climbing the west side hills onto a ridge overlooking Waimea Canyon. Glimpses of red-orange-coral rock caught the eye while we wound our way toward … Continue reading…
In winter fog often settles into the Thompson River Valleys blanketing the community in grey. We can go up above the clouds to hike. When the clouds are below 750 feet, we can hike up above the fog on Dufferin Hill. On the way up the tower Trail, we get our first views over to Mount Peter. Passing the towers, … Continue reading…
On many Top 10 Trails in the world, the Kalalau Trail on Kauai draws hikers from all over the world. The trail starts at the end of the road at Ke’e Beach on the North Shore and climbs across the steep slopes of the Na Pali Coast for 11 miles. The first section traverses the pali to Hanikapi’ai Beach, a … Continue reading…
In dry conditions, the Outer Inks Lakes trails area likely to have motorcycles, quads, and 4×4’s. Once it turns cool, there may be hunters. But once the snows start to fall, the forested trails provide many opportunities for hiking and snowshoeing. On a cold and sunny December day, we chose the Dam Lake Loop. Most of the route is a … Continue reading…
The Maha’ulepu Trail starts at Shipwreck Beach in Poipu on Kauai. The trail climbs to the top of the seabluffs looking over Keoneloa Bay. The bluffs are mostly lithified sand dunes – calcite cementation of wind-blown carbonate and other materials. Trails run along the top of the bluffs but the most interesting routes go up and down on rock shelves … Continue reading…
Each winter we return to snowshoe in the Bush Lake area. The north end sees more cross country skiers and snowshoers partly because a loop is marked and usually tracked. We recently added our track on that loop, adding some paths around windfall and across new cutblocks. We have been on the south end of the area twice and set … Continue reading…
Every year we look back and wish we had done more of the places on our long list. This year we snowshoed in the winter, we started paddling on the river early and had an early start to the hiking season too, on the trails 3 days a week from February to December. We paddled 64 days from Feb. 29 … Continue reading…
Much of the Island of Mauai is Haleakala, a 10 000 foot shield volcano. We can drive to the summit, entering Haleakala National Park on the way up. The Visitors Center is on the rim, just below the highest point and this is where the main trailhead is. Almost all of the hikes must drop into the crater, 3000 feet … Continue reading…
The Dogwood Marshes may be the best snowshoeing terrain in the Kamloops area. We can drive up the Lac le Jeune Road and park at the Bush Lake pull-through/parking area. The trailhead is right by the fence on the east side. The trails drop into the bowl and then snowshoers just follow any of the informal tracks. Many routes are … Continue reading…
Just south of Potholes Reservoir is the Columbia National Wildlife Refuge, an area of basalt lava cliffs, lakes, ponds, grasslands, and canyons. It is part of the channeled scablands, a corridor scoured by the release of an ice age lake, now an eroded and complex terrain. We drove into the middle of the Refuge to hike the Frog Lake … Continue reading…
We hike in the Frederick Bluffs each year. It is a rugged area of rocky bluffs, grassland slopes, gullies, and wonderful views. There are no trails into the Frederick Bluffs area. We park just off the Frederick Road and create our own route going up one bluff, down in the gullies, and up the next bluff, sometimes … Continue reading…
The first half of the Bowron Lakes Circuit is a challenge with difficult portages, some rough campsites, and long paddles. The return to Bowron Lake, the second half of the Circuit, is a much more enjoyable wilderness experience. The Bowron River empties into Lanezi Lake then there is another shorter downriver paddle to Sandy Lake, an easy paddle with the … Continue reading…
The Bowron Lakes Circuit is one of the top paddling destinations in the world, a week-long paddling, portaging, and camping wilderness challenge. Reservations are needed to venture onto the circuit and an orientation is required before starting on the 2.4 km portage to Kibee Lake. We had our long kayaks loaded onto kayak carts to pull up the hill early … Continue reading…
The road on the west coast of Maui goes south past Kihei, through Wailea and then ends at Kahena. At the end of the paved road, a narrow road winds through lava flows in the Ahihi Natural Preserve before ending at La Perouse Bay. The Hoapili Trail continues south along the coastline. It was once part of the “Kings Highway,” … Continue reading…
We try to hike the Barnes Lake Trails twice a year, and in 2016 we returned in November to do the routes again. We started at the Gardiner Road trailhead and hiked up Trail #1, then continued to take left turns around the outside loop of the area, returning back into the grasslands on the west side, finishing at Barnharvale … Continue reading…
Kealia Pond National Wildlife Reserve is located just north of Kihei on Maui. A viewing platform of the larger pond is found one mile north of Kihei on the northeast side. On the other side of the pond off the highway is the Kealia Coastal Boardwalk, a 2200 foot walkway through salt marsh ponds. Wetland birds, waterfowl, and coastal birds … Continue reading…
